The Detroit Lions landed star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, and he has since proven to be one of the — if not the — biggest steals of the entire class.
But St. Brown wasn't the only great pick general manager Brad Holmes made, as he landed Penei Sewell in the first, Alim McNeill and Ifeatu Melifonwu in the third and Derrick Barnes in the fourth, giving him what can be deemed as a successful draft class at this point.
That was recently reinforced in a 2021 NFL re-draft done by The 33rd Team's Marcus Mosher, who had St. Brown and McNeill both going in the first round, and Sewell going four spots higher than he originally went.
The Detroit Lions selected Penei Sewell at this spot, but it is no surprise that he went much higher in this re-draft. Instead, the Lions draft the player that they stole on Day 3. Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the best receivers in the league and a perfect fit in Ben Johnson's offense.
Sewell went to the San Francisco 49ers with the third pick in Mosher's re-draft, and McNeill landed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at pick No. 32.
St. Brown has never forgotten how much he was passed up and even keeps a list of the wide receivers taken ahead of him, which he can recite by memory. Of those 16 players, only Cincinnati Bengals wideout Ja'Marr Chase has had a better career production-wise, and he was taken with the No. 5 overall pick.
Sewell has become one of the best tackles in the entire sport, and McNeill is fresh off a breakout year in 2023. Both Sewell and St. Brown have been rewarded with extensions, and McNeill could get his in due time.
